Digital News Report 2026. What you need to know

We explore how people are consuming news in 2026, the role of platforms, levels of trust and interest, AI chatbots, news influencers and more. In this opening episode of our Digital News Report 2026 series, we explore the major trends around how people are consuming news around the world. We look at the dominance of platforms as a source of news, how people are using AI, declining trust and interest in news, the role of news influencers, subscription trends and much more. Speakers: Jim Egan is the lead author of the Digital News Report 2026 and is a senior research associate at the Reuters Institute. Richard Fletcher is a co-author of the Digital News Report and is the Director of Research at the Reuters Institute. Host Mitali Mukherjee is the Director of the Reuters Institute and is a political economy journalist with more than two decades of experience in TV, print and digital journalism. Find a full transcript here: https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/news/our-podcast-digital-news-report-2026-what-you-need-know